Family Drama
by nashvillefan12
Summary: It's Father's Day and it doesn't go as Rayna plans.
1. Family Drama

Rayna stood in her roomy bathroom staring at herself in the mirror as she finished putting the final touches of her make up on. Before she opened the bathroom door she took one last glance at herself in the full length mirror on the back of the door. She fluffed her hair, check her watch then stuck her head out into the hallway and yelled "Girls it's time to go." She walked out into the hall and made her way into her bedroom where Deacon was buttoning the last 4 buttons on his shirt. "Do I look okay?" he asked with his charming smile. She smiled back as she walked over to him and grabbed ahold of his hands that were buttoning his shirt. "You look like a million bucks." She replied in a teasing voice as she yanked him closer grabbing ahold of his collar this time and letting his hands free to grab her waist as she kissed him. She helped him finish button his shirt and fix his collar she had ruffled up as a dirty thought ran through her head. She wanted to be undoing the buttons on his shirt and lock the bedroom door but a small voice interrupted her thoughts. "Mom" Daphne stepped into the doorway of her mother's bedroom sounding annoyed. "Maddie is keeping secrets again" Daphne's small voice continued. Rayna looked at Deacon as if she were challenging him to go check on their teenage daughter. Deacon wrinkled his nose as if saying it was her turn.

Rayna made her way down to Maddie's room where she laid stretched out on her bed with a pencil and a notebook. Maddie saw her mother walking closer to her and quickly sat up and placed her notebook under her pillow. "Whatcha writing there?" Maddie stood waving her arms in anger. "Can I just have a little privacy here?" From the time Maddie was a toddler whenever she would get mad and throw her toys or scream at the top of her lungs, Rayna could see Deacon's hot temper coming out of her. "Maddie I understand you've been going through a lot these past couple of months. You're growing up and it's not cool to have your little sister hanging around you all the time but she is feeling left out." Maddie sat back down on her bed and rolled her eyes. "That little snitch needs to learn how to knock." Rayna remembered looking up to her big sister, Tandy and how annoyed she used to get when Rayna snuck into her room to borrow her lip gloss when they were kids. Rayna played with her daughter's hair, trying to calm her down. "I will talk to her about that. Are you ready to go to your pop pops now?" Maddie grabbed her cell phone to distract herself so she didn't have to make eye contact with her mother. "I'm not going." She spoke in a soft yet firm voice. Rayna raised her eyebrows in shock but before she could open her mouth to say anything Maddie continued on. "I'm old enough to stay home by myself." Rayna finally able to speak replies in a motherly voice. "Your Granddad would like to see you and I think you owe him that on Father's day." Maddie shrugged her shoulders. They both looked at the door to see Deacon and Daphne standing there. "You girls ready?" Deacon asked. Maddie brushed past them and headed downstairs to wait in the car. Rayna and Deacon shared a look. Rayna knew it was a long road ahead of them until Maddie was over this teenage phase.

Deacon, Rayna and the girls arrived at Lamar's. Maddie's mood lightened over the car ride there. Rayna and Deacon walked in hand in hand following the girls. The girls ran over to the white haired man sitting in a comfortable chair in the livingroom and gave their grandfather a hug. Rayna could see how uncomfortable Deacon looked. She knew he felt out of his element. She squeezed his hand a little tighter and placed her other hand on his chest bring him closer so she could whisper in his ear. "Just relax." She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and walked over to her father. She bent down to kiss her father on the cheek. "Happy Father's Day, Daddy." Lamar smiled. Deacon stood back with Tandy watching Rayna and the girls interact with her father. "Thank you, baby." The girls ran into the other room. Lamar grabbed Rayna's hand and stared at it. Rayna knew exactly what he was thinking. "Don't start with this." She pulled her hand away. "This family could use some good publicity, Clayborne." Rayna was embarrassed by her father's comment, she could only imagine what Deacon was feeling being put on the spot like that. "Okay enough of that. Tandy, why don't Deacon and I help you in the kitchen." She was trying to escape from her father grilling Deacon on when they were getting engaged. She walked over to Deacon and placed her hand on his shoulder to get him out of that room as quickly as possible. He knew she was just trying to save him but he knew if he was going to be a part of Rayna's life he was going to have to get on Lamar's good side. If Lamar wasn't happy, no one was happy. "You and Tandy go ahead." Deacon nodded his head towards Lamar. A look of concern was on Rayna's face. She stroked his face with her hand knowing he was doing this for her. "You don't have to do this." Deacon was able to fake a smile even though he could hear his heartbeat pounding in his ears. "It's okay." Rayna kissed him and walked out of the room with Tandy.

Deacon found the courage to take a few steps closer to Lamar. "I spent most of life fighting with Rayna because I wasn't a good father to her. I disappointed her time after time but that's in the past. Now I just want to see her happy and son you make her happy." Deacon breathed a sigh of relief. He was happy to hear that Lamar approved of his relationship with Rayna. "Thank you, Sir. I too have put Rayna through hell through the years but she's given me a second chance and I plan on making her happy for the rest of our lives." Lamar nodded in approval. "That's exactly what I want to hear." Deacon studied Lamar. He sounded like he truly wanted to see Rayna happy but tried to figure out if there was a hidden agenda behind it. "You sound like you really mean that, Lamar." Lamar knew Deacon was testing him. "This doesn't have anything to do with getting back at Teddy, does it?" Deacon continued.

Tandy stood over the stove as Rayna peeled potatoes. "You two seem pretty serious." Rayna wanted to smile but she sensed her older sister was about to over analyze her relationship as she has for years. "We are. Things are different this time. We're honest with each other. There's no more secrets." Rayna didn't know why she always felt she had to defend herself to Tandy but she did. "Any word from Teddy?" Tandy never wasted time with small talk, she always said what was on her mind. "Not since he disappeared six weeks ago." Tandy looked up from cooking on the stove. "He was embarrassed." Rayna placed the knife she had in her hand on the countertop, she raised her voice. "Why are you defending him?" Tandy interrupted before Rayna could continue. "I'm not defending him." Rayna quickly jumped in. "He left those girls because I told Deacon Maddie was his and he couldn't handle the bad press when it got out to the public. That's a pretty cowardly thing to do!" Tandy tried to calm her down. "I agree." Tandy continued and Rayna rolled her eyes knowing there was a but coming. "But I think the whole situation could've been handled differently. For fourteen years he was the only father Maddie knew and you took that away from him in two seconds of blurting out the news because you had a guilty conscience." Rayna took a step back from her sister. She couldn't believe this was happening. "I didn't take anything away from him. He left! Nothing had to change. He could've continued being a father to both those girls but he walked away." Tandy shook her head, clearly not getting through to Rayna as she intended to. "Everything would've changed whether he stuck around or not." Rayna was frustrated at this point. She could read Tandy like a book. "You sound just like him. Have you been talking to him? Do you know where he is? Did he put you up to this?" So many questions flew out of Rayna's mouth. Tandy looked down at the floor, answering Rayna's questions. "Well you tell him that if he dare step a foot in this town again, he is not to go near the girls." Deacon walked into the kitchen. Rayna walked over to meet him. "Let's go home." Deacon could see Rayna and Tandy had been arguing. Deacon and Rayna started to head out of the kitchen when Rayna turned around to face her sister. "Have Daddy call me to come pick up the girls when ya'll are finish your dinner. I'm not going to let you ruin this day for them too." Rayna turned on her heels and kept walking out the door with Deacon following behind.

Rayna vented the whole way home about Tandy being in contact with Teddy this whole time. They arrived at the house. Rayna slammed her purse down on the island in the kitchen and opened the fridge to get herself a Deacon water bottles. Deacon leaned on the island, placing all his weight on his forearms. "I'm sorry for thinking it was a good idea to go over there today in the first place." Rayna sounded like she was blaming herself for what happened between her and Tandy. "Hey" Deacon whispered in a reassuring voice. "It's not your fault." He continued. As Rayna shut the fridge a picture that she had held up with magnetics on the fridge caught her eye. It was Deacon and the two girls. "This is your first Father's Day with the girls." Deacon shrugged his shoulders. "I don't need a special day. They know how much I love them." Rayna made her way over to where Deacon was standing and handed him his water bottle. She touched his face. "They love you too." She leaned in for a kiss. She placed her hand on the back of his head wanting more. Before either one of them knew it, they had made their way upstairs, leaving a trail of clothing along the way.


	2. Let's Be A Family

**I can't figure out how to make another chapter so I edited it so it looks like there's 2 more chapters! How do I fix this?**

**Chapter 1: Family Drama**

Rayna stood in her roomy bathroom staring at herself in the mirror as she finished putting the final touches of her make up on. Before she opened the bathroom door she took one last glance at herself in the full length mirror on the back of the door. She fluffed her hair, check her watch then stuck her head out into the hallway and yelled "Girls it's time to go." She walked out into the hall and made her way into her bedroom where Deacon was buttoning the last 4 buttons on his shirt. "Do I look okay?" he asked with his charming smile. She smiled back as she walked over to him and grabbed ahold of his hands that were buttoning his shirt. "You look like a million bucks." She replied in a teasing voice as she yanked him closer grabbing ahold of his collar this time and letting his hands free to grab her waist as she kissed him. She helped him finish button his shirt and fix his collar she had ruffled up as a dirty thought ran through her head. She wanted to be undoing the buttons on his shirt and lock the bedroom door but a small voice interrupted her thoughts. "Mom" Daphne stepped into the doorway of her mother's bedroom sounding annoyed. "Maddie is keeping secrets again" Daphne's small voice continued. Rayna looked at Deacon as if she were challenging him to go check on their teenage daughter. Deacon wrinkled his nose as if saying it was her turn.

Rayna made her way down to Maddie's room where she laid stretched out on her bed with a pencil and a notebook. Maddie saw her mother walking closer to her and quickly sat up and placed her notebook under her pillow. "Whatcha writing there?" Maddie stood waving her arms in anger. "Can I just have a little privacy here?" From the time Maddie was a toddler whenever she would get mad and throw her toys or scream at the top of her lungs, Rayna could see Deacon's hot temper coming out of her. "Maddie I understand you've been going through a lot these past couple of months. You're growing up and it's not cool to have your little sister hanging around you all the time but she is feeling left out." Maddie sat back down on her bed and rolled her eyes. "That little snitch needs to learn how to knock." Rayna remembered looking up to her big sister, Tandy and how annoyed she used to get when Rayna snuck into her room to borrow her lip gloss when they were kids. Rayna played with her daughter's hair, trying to calm her down. "I will talk to her about that. Are you ready to go to your pop pops now?" Maddie grabbed her cell phone to distract herself so she didn't have to make eye contact with her mother. "I'm not going." She spoke in a soft yet firm voice. Rayna raised her eyebrows in shock but before she could open her mouth to say anything Maddie continued on. "I'm old enough to stay home by myself." Rayna finally able to speak replies in a motherly voice. "Your Granddad would like to see you and I think you owe him that on Father's day." Maddie shrugged her shoulders. They both looked at the door to see Deacon and Daphne standing there. "You girls ready?" Deacon asked. Maddie brushed past them and headed downstairs to wait in the car. Rayna and Deacon shared a look. Rayna knew it was a long road ahead of them until Maddie was over this teenage phase.

Deacon, Rayna and the girls arrived at Lamar's. Maddie's mood lightened over the car ride there. Rayna and Deacon walked in hand in hand following the girls. The girls ran over to the white haired man sitting in a comfortable chair in the livingroom and gave their grandfather a hug. Rayna could see how uncomfortable Deacon looked. She knew he felt out of his element. She squeezed his hand a little tighter and placed her other hand on his chest bring him closer so she could whisper in his ear. "Just relax." She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and walked over to her father. She bent down to kiss her father on the cheek. "Happy Father's Day, Daddy." Lamar smiled. Deacon stood back with Tandy watching Rayna and the girls interact with her father. "Thank you, baby." The girls ran into the other room. Lamar grabbed Rayna's hand and stared at it. Rayna knew exactly what he was thinking. "Don't start with this." She pulled her hand away. "This family could use some good publicity, Clayborne." Rayna was embarrassed by her father's comment, she could only imagine what Deacon was feeling being put on the spot like that. "Okay enough of that. Tandy, why don't Deacon and I help you in the kitchen." She was trying to escape from her father grilling Deacon on when they were getting engaged. She walked over to Deacon and placed her hand on his shoulder to get him out of that room as quickly as possible. He knew she was just trying to save him but he knew if he was going to be a part of Rayna's life he was going to have to get on Lamar's good side. If Lamar wasn't happy, no one was happy. "You and Tandy go ahead." Deacon nodded his head towards Lamar. A look of concern was on Rayna's face. She stroked his face with her hand knowing he was doing this for her. "You don't have to do this." Deacon was able to fake a smile even though he could hear his heartbeat pounding in his ears. "It's okay." Rayna kissed him and walked out of the room with Tandy.

Deacon found the courage to take a few steps closer to Lamar. "I spent most of life fighting with Rayna because I wasn't a good father to her. I disappointed her time after time but that's in the past. Now I just want to see her happy and son you make her happy." Deacon breathed a sigh of relief. He was happy to hear that Lamar approved of his relationship with Rayna. "Thank you, Sir. I too have put Rayna through hell through the years but she's given me a second chance and I plan on making her happy for the rest of our lives." Lamar nodded in approval. "That's exactly what I want to hear." Deacon studied Lamar. He sounded like he truly wanted to see Rayna happy but tried to figure out if there was a hidden agenda behind it. "You sound like you really mean that, Lamar." Lamar knew Deacon was testing him. "This doesn't have anything to do with getting back at Teddy, does it?" Deacon continued.

Tandy stood over the stove as Rayna peeled potatoes. "You two seem pretty serious." Rayna wanted to smile but she sensed her older sister was about to over analyze her relationship as she has for years. "We are. Things are different this time. We're honest with each other. There's no more secrets." Rayna didn't know why she always felt she had to defend herself to Tandy but she did. "Any word from Teddy?" Tandy never wasted time with small talk, she always said what was on her mind. "Not since he disappeared six weeks ago." Tandy looked up from cooking on the stove. "He was embarrassed." Rayna placed the knife she had in her hand on the countertop, she raised her voice. "Why are you defending him?" Tandy interrupted before Rayna could continue. "I'm not defending him." Rayna quickly jumped in. "He left those girls because I told Deacon Maddie was his and he couldn't handle the bad press when it got out to the public. That's a pretty cowardly thing to do!" Tandy tried to calm her down. "I agree." Tandy continued and Rayna rolled her eyes knowing there was a but coming. "But I think the whole situation could've been handled differently. For fourteen years he was the only father Maddie knew and you took that away from him in two seconds of blurting out the news because you had a guilty conscience." Rayna took a step back from her sister. She couldn't believe this was happening. "I didn't take anything away from him. He left! Nothing had to change. He could've continued being a father to both those girls but he walked away." Tandy shook her head, clearly not getting through to Rayna as she intended to. "Everything would've changed whether he stuck around or not." Rayna was frustrated at this point. She could read Tandy like a book. "You sound just like him. Have you been talking to him? Do you know where he is? Did he put you up to this?" So many questions flew out of Rayna's mouth. Tandy looked down at the floor, answering Rayna's questions. "Well you tell him that if he dare step a foot in this town again, he is not to go near the girls." Deacon walked into the kitchen. Rayna walked over to meet him. "Let's go home." Deacon could see Rayna and Tandy had been arguing. Deacon and Rayna started to head out of the kitchen when Rayna turned around to face her sister. "Have Daddy call me to come pick up the girls when ya'll are finish your dinner. I'm not going to let you ruin this day for them too." Rayna turned on her heels and kept walking out the door with Deacon following behind.

Rayna vented the whole way home about Tandy being in contact with Teddy this whole time. They arrived at the house. Rayna slammed her purse down on the island in the kitchen and opened the fridge to get herself a Deacon water bottles. Deacon leaned on the island, placing all his weight on his forearms. "I'm sorry for thinking it was a good idea to go over there today in the first place." Rayna sounded like she was blaming herself for what happened between her and Tandy. "Hey" Deacon whispered in a reassuring voice. "It's not your fault." He continued. As Rayna shut the fridge a picture that she had held up with magnetics on the fridge caught her eye. It was Deacon and the two girls. "This is your first Father's Day with the girls." Deacon shrugged his shoulders. "I don't need a special day. They know how much I love them." Rayna made her way over to where Deacon was standing and handed him his water bottle. She touched his face. "They love you too." She leaned in for a kiss. She placed her hand on the back of his head wanting more. Before either one of them knew it, they had made their way upstairs, leaving a trail of clothing along the way.

**Chapter 2: Let's Be A Family**

Upstairs in Rayna's bedroom, lying in bed half covered up, Deacon rolled over on his back turning his head to face Rayna who was also lying on her back. Rayna turned her head to face Deacon who was grinning. "What?" she asked trying to read his face. "I think you need to fight more with your sister because when you're worked up-" Deacon raised his eyebrows not completing his sentence. Rayna playfully hit him in the bare chest. "Hey!" she said. "Ouch!" he reacted. She scooched closer to him for a kiss. All of a sudden there was a big banging noise downstairs like someone had slammed the door. "What was that?" Rayna propped herself up on her elbows. Deacon also propped himself up on his elbows. "Do you think it's the girls?" he asked. Rayna looked at him and they both jumped out of bed to find their clothes. "My pants are downstairs." Rayna's voice said at a soft whisper. "I'll run down and check it out." Deacon said as he buttoned his pants. They heard another slamming of the door before Deacon bolted to get downstairs shirtless. On his way down he gathered Rayna's clothing and hid it in the coat closet. He found his shirt and through it on over his head. He didn't see anyone in sight. He made his way to the door and peaked his head out the curtain of the window next to the door. He didn't even see a car in the driveway. Rayna found some other clothes to slide on and made her way downstairs to see what was going on. Deacon met her at the bottom of the stairs. "There's no one here." She wrinkled her nose in confusion. "That's weird." Then a smile came across her face. "More time for us." She yanked him closer to kiss him.

Lamar dropped the kids off later that evening. Rayna informed the girls they were going to have movie night so they rushed up to their rooms to get their pajamas on. Rayna was in the kitchen preparing the snacks and drinks while Lamar cornered Deacon once again. After Lamar said goodnight to the girls and Rayna, he asked Deacon to walk him out. Lamar and Deacon stood on the porch. Deacon was unsure what Lamar wanted this time. Lamar fidgeted with something in his pocket as he spoke. "I want to prove to you that I'm not trying to get back at Teddy." He pulled out a ring from his pocket. Deacon tried to contain himself but he couldn't help but chuckled. "Are you proposing to me, Sir?" Deacon could tell Lamar was trying to be serious so he composed himself. "I gave this to Rayna's mother and I want you to have it so when the time is right you can pass it on to her." Deacon was speechless. "I believe in you two." Deacon smiled. "Thank you." He reached for the ring and studied it. "It's a beauty isn't it?" Deacon kept admiring the ring. "It sure is." Lamar patted Deacon's shoulder. "You have a goodnight." Deacon shook his hand. "You too and thank you again." Lamar nodded his head and started to walk to his car and then stopped in his tracks to face Deacon who was still admiring the ring. "You know Rayna's birthday is coming up in 2 weeks. That would make for one hell of a present." Deacon's face went pale. "Too soon?" Lamar asked. Deacon shrugged his shoulders. "I don't want to ruin what we already have that's all." Lamar gave him a reassuring look. "You're right, you'll know when the time is right." Lamar continued as he got in his car. Deacon stuck the ring safely in his shirt pocket and returned inside.

Rayna and the girls were already in the livingroom waiting on Deacon to start the movie. Rayna didn't ask any questions about what went on outside with her father. Deacon sat on the couch next to Rayna while Maddie and Daphne sat on the floor in front of them. Pretty soon the credits rolled on the TV screen, the empty bowls of ice cream laid scattered on the coffee table. Rayna reached for the remote to turn the TV off. "Alright girls, time for bed." Maddie and Daphne looked back at her with their sad little faces. "But it's Summer vacation." Daphne piped up. Rayna stood firm and replied "You have camp in the morning." "Why do we have to go to the dumb place again?" Maddie asked with her teenage attitude. "Hey, it's not dumb! I went when I was your age." "That's because Granddad sent you there and you said Granddad never let you have fun. Camp is not fun." Maddie barked back at her mother. "I'm sorry you feel that way but you're going." "Another Summer of arts and crafts." Daphne rolled her eyes as she stood up. The girls made their way upstairs with Rayna following behind.

Deacon made his way up shortly after. Rayna was in the bathroom with Daphne as she brushed her teeth. Deacon passed by Maddie's room noticing her guitar laying close to her bed as she sat on her bed with a pencil and notepad. Deacon smiled to himself knowing she was writing a song. He kept his distance from the hallway because he didn't want to disturb her or get on her bad teenage side. She tapped her pencil against her notebook thinking of how to wrap the song up. She looked up noticing him. She motioned for him to come in. As he walked in she gasped because a thought came to mind and she turned her attention back to her notebook as she scribbled something down real quick then smiling back at him excited. "I just completed my first song!" He sat down next to her. "Congratulations. Pretty soon you'll be recording you own album just like your mama and you'll be a big star." She smiled. "You think so?" She sounded unsure. Rayna had put Daphne to bed and heard Deacon's voice coming from Maddie's room. She stood real close to the door so they couldn't see her. "Not a doubt in my mind. You have the voice of an angel just like your mom and you can write your own music, not a lot of people in this business can do that." She shrugged her shoulders. "I must've got that gene from you." Deacon's heart melted hearing Maddie say that. He put his arm around her and dragged her closer to him so he could kiss the top of her head. "You know my mom has been on my case about getting you a father's day present and a card but I wanted no part in either because it's still just weird for me. I don't even know what to call you anymore. Do I call you Uncle Deacon or dad? And what do I call my dad? Do I call him dad too or Teddy? But with him being out of the picture these last couple months it's been nice to get to know you a little better. You obviously make my mom happy which keeps her off my back a little." Deacon laughed. "Listen, I know how weird this is. It's weird for both of us but I don't want you to worry about hurting my feelings. You have enough on your plate with school and everything else to stress about. You can call me whatever you want because whatever you decide to address me as there's one thing that will never change." Maddie looked at him. "What's that?" she asked. "There is a special place in my heart for you and Daphne. There always has been whether there's blood involved or not." Maddie smiled at him as she breathed a sigh of relief. "Well I may not have gone shopping but I did write this song for you for Father's Day. It's my first song so no promises." She picked up her guitar and started strumming and singing as she glanced at her notebook for the lyrics. She knew most of them off the top of her head.

Rayna got a little teary eyed listening in the hallway but she quickly ran to the bathroom when she heard Daphne's bedroom door open. After Maddie finished her song, Deacon hugged her tightly. "Thank you. That was amazing kiddo." Daphne walked into her sister's room. "Hey I want to sing!" Maddie rolled her eyes. Deacon stood up from the bed. "You girls are going to get me in trouble with your mother. You better get to bed." Daphne crossed her arms and let out a big dramatic sigh. "Fine!" as she turned to leave. Deacon stopped her before she could get out the door. "Hey I want to ask you two something." Deacon peaked his head out in the hall to see if Rayna was listening in. Rayna had made her way to her bedroom when she knew Daphne was out of sight. She was nowhere in ear shot. Daphne sat on the bed next to Maddie. "You girls know how much I love your mother right?" They both nodded. "And you both know how much I love you two right?" Daphne started swinging her legs because her feet didn't touch the ground. "Yeah." She said. "Of course." Maddie piped up. "Okay good because I need your opinion on something." Deacon continued. "How would you feel if we were all a family?" The girls smiled at each other understanding what Deacon was going to say next. "Really? That would be awesome!" Maddie said excited. "Yeah!" Daphne said excited as well. The girls jumped off the bed to hug Deacon. "You girls are the best!"  
The next morning the girls were downstairs with Deacon eating breakfast while Rayna finished getting ready. Deacon made the girls breakfast and packed their lunches which was normally Rayna's job. "Well? Did you ask her yet?" Daphne asked with a big smile. "No not yet." He said. "You're not seriously going to send us off to camp and expect us to wait 2 weeks not knowing if you asked her or not are you?" Maddie asked. Deacon let out a laugh. "When the time is right I will and you girls will be the first to know." Rayna made it to the bottom of the stairs and caught the last part of Deacon's sentence. "First ones to know what?" Rayna asked. She noticed the girls were almost finished eating and their lunches were all packed. "You packed their lunches? I'm impressed!" She gave him a little peck on the cheek. "Uncle Deacon this would be the perfect time!" Daphne said in a taunting voice as if she were daring him to pop the question right then. "Perfect time for what Sweetie?" Rayna asked. "Please! Please! Before we have to go!" Maddie begged him. "You girls are terrible at keeping a secret." Deacon said with a nervous smile knowing he was being put on the spot. "We don't keep secrets in the house anymore remember?" Rayna insisted recalling the biggest secret about Maddie being Deacon's. Deacon shrugged his shoulders. "Okay, okay you're right." He said. The girls both smiled at each other knowing he was going to ask. Rayna caught them out of the corner of her eye and then turned her attention to Deacon. "What's going on?" She asked. "Ray, I want to know that-" Deacon started to say before getting interrupted. "Forget all the mushy stuff just ask her already!" Maddie said. Rayna turned to face the girls having an idea of what was about to happen but before she knew it she turned her attention back to Deacon who was now down on one knee. "Will you marry me?" He asked holding the ring her father gave to him the night before. Rayna got a little teary eyed. She was speechless. "Say yes Mommy!" Daphne encouraged her. "Yes. Yes!" She said more excited as she kept saying it. "Really?" he asked excited. "Yes! Of course!" Deacon stood up to kiss her. Maddie put down her phone she had recorded the proposal on and both the girls hugged Deacon and Rayna. Maddie returned to her phone. "I am so uploading this to YouTube!" Rayna and Deacon stood in the kitchen kissing. "Can I be your maid of honor?" Maddie asked. "Yeah Mom can I be your flower girl!" Asked Daphne. "You girls can be whatever you want!" Rayna replied. "Does this mean we don't have to go to camp?" Daphne asked with high hopes. "We're not getting married today! You're still going! We'll still be engaged when you get back!" Rayna said. "Engaged!" Maddie repeated. "I love it!" Maddie squealed. Rayna grabbed their lunches and Deacon grabbed their bags for camp as they headed out the door.  
They all loaded up Deacon's truck. Rayna stared at her ring in awe. "This is Mama's ring!" Deacon smiled and nodded. Maddie was busy on her phone as usual. "I uploaded that video 10 minutes ago and there's already 250,000 views!" she said. "Wow!" Rayna said smiling at Deacon as he smiled back. Rayna and Deacon hopped in the front seat. Before the two girls could get in the backseat Maddie noticed a bottle of whiskey sitting on the floor. "Why is there a bottle of whiskey sitting back here?" She sounded shocked. "What?" Deacon asked confused. Rayna looked in the backseat and saw the bottle then she studied his face. "Deacon?" She asked looking for an answer. "Ray I swear I have no idea how that got in here!" He said calmly. "What's going on?" Daphne asked. "How does a bottle of whiskey just appear in your truck without you knowing?" Rayna asked almost accusing him. "I don't know!" Deacon said trying to defend himself. "Just when I started to trust you and let my guard down!" Maddie said sounding hurt. "Maddie." Deacon started to say. "No! I'm not going anywhere if you're driving!" Maddie snapped back. Rayna shot Deacon a look that could kill. She wanted to believe him but things didn't fit just right. "I'll drive!" She said.  
They switched seats and got the girls to the camp. Deacon stayed in the truck as Rayna helped the girls find their cabin and unload their stuff. He knew he had let Maddie down and if he tried helping it would only make things worse.  
Rayna returned to the truck before she could start it they both sat there in silence. She turned her head towards him. "Should I take you to a meeting?" She finally found the courage to ask. Deacon rubbed his head in anger trying to stay calm. "I'm clean Ray! Check the bottle! It's not open! I didn't buy it. I don't know how it got there and I don't intend on drinking it. If it'll make you feel better I'll go to a meeting, I'll go see Coleman, I'll do whatever it takes to prove to you that I'm not that person anymore!" He said. "Deacon." Rayna started to speak. "I gave you that ring Ray. I gave you that ring to start our lives together. You, me and the girls. I love them and I love you and I wouldn't jeopardize that!" He continued. She sighed a big sigh of relief. "I believe you." She said. "You do?" He asked. "The only way this relationship is going to work is if it's based on trust." She stated. He let out a sigh too. She leaned closer to him. "I love you." She said I'm a soft voice. They kissed.

**chapter 3: Trauma Drama**

Rayna drove home. They walked in and Rayna grabbed her car keys to head to rehearsal. "I have to meet Scarlett for a rehearsal. Are you sure you're going to be-" Rayna started to say before Deacon interrupted her. "I'll be fine." He assured her. "Do you want me to get rid of it?" she asked worried. "No, no I can do it. Go to your rehearsal and we'll celebrate our engagement tonight." He smiled. She grabbed his hands. "I can't wait. I love you." "I love you too." He said before she kissed him and then left.

Deacon started planning a romantic night. His mind wasn't even focused on the bottle of whiskey sitting in the backseat of his truck. He made a few phone calls. He wanted a dozen roses in a nice glass crystal vase delivered. He dug around for candles and the nice china. He was beyond excited about tonight with Rayna. It was going to be just him and her celebrating the next chapter in their life.

Rayna finished her rehearsal with Scarlett. She dug around in her purse for her cell phone and dialed Deacon's number still concerned about him but still wanting to trust him. "Hey." He said in a deep, sexy voice. "Hey Babe, I just finished my rehearsal, thought maybe we could start celebrating early." With a smile in her voice as she gathered her things and started walking out of the studio. "Well-" he said with a hesitation. "What? What is it?" The smile in her voice turned to a disappointment. "It's just I really want to make this night special for us and I haven't worked out all the details yet. Can you give me 2 hours?" he asked hoping for her forgiveness. This was all for her after all. "I have to wait 2 hours to see my handsome fiancé?" she teased. "God, I love hearing you say that." He was weak. "Fine, I'll wait. Two hours. That's all I'm giving you. I can't wait to see what you have planned and climb into bed and make love to you." She closed her eyes imaging herself in his arms again. She could hardly wait. When she opened her eyes she saw Bucky walking towards her in ear shot. On the other end, Deacon closed his eyes and bit his lip trying so hard not to give in and let her come home to him right then. He was so set on making this night special for the two of them. "It'll be worth it. Trust me." He assured her. "Alright. I'll see you in two hours!" she reminded him. "It might be before that. No promises. I'll call you." He said wanting to see her so badly after hearing her voice. "I love you Darling." He whispered in a sexy voice. "I love you too." She said as she hung up her phone to face Bucky. "Hey where are you off to?" Bucky asked feeling uncomfortable interrupting her phone call like that. "Well Deacon is home planning a special night for us so I'm not allowed home until he calls and tells me everything is set so I thought I would head to the gym so I can look good for my wedding." She said ecstatic as she flaunted her ring. "Yeah I saw the proposal online. It's got over 3 million hits and it's on every entertainment network. Congratulations." He said hugging her. "Thank you." They chatted for a while longer about her rehearsal with Scarlett and more on her engagement. She got in her car and headed to the gym.

Back at the house Deacon whistled while he worked hard to put together a night Rayna would never forget. A knock at the door startled him but he knew it was the flower delivery he ordered. He walked to the door and opened it. The man holding the flowers in the crystal vase hid his face in the dozen of flowers. "Wow! They are perfect. Would you mind setting them on the counter here while I grab my wallet?" Deacon asked as he walked away to get his wallet to pay the man. The man walked in and set the flowers down. He shut the door behind him. Deacon turned around with his wallet in his hand. "How much do I owe you?" he asked. "Your life." The man replied in a devious voice. Deacon faced the man, it was Teddy. "What the hell are you doing here?" Deacon asked, his mood changing by the second. "I tipped the guy good, so you owe me 50 bucks." Teddy taunted Deacon. He saw the discomfort on Deacon's face. Teddy walked around observing all the changes in the house, including the photo of Deacon and the girls hung on the fridge. "I come and go as I please. In fact I was here yesterday. Did you like my little present I left you in your truck?" Teddy asked. "I'm not even tempted but thanks for the kind gesture." Deacon said. "I saw your little engagement announcement on the internet. Too bad Rayna will see you for what you are before she gets the chance to walk down the aisle. A no good drunk." Teddy replied. Deacon ignored his comment as he ruffled through his wallet pulling out a 50 dollar bill. "Here's your 50 bucks, now get out." Deacon said. Teddy looked at his money and laughed. "It's not the easy to get rid of me." He said taking a seat on the stool at the island in the kitchen. "Not unless you call this engagement off with Rayna and walk away from my daughters. Leave town and never contact my family again. Then I might leave you alone." Teddy said in a matter of fact voice. "That's not going to happen because they're my family now." Deacon said getting a rise out of Teddy. Teddy stood on his feet getting angry. "They will never be your family." He shouted. "Rayna and the girls mean everything to me and I'm not about to walk away like you did." Deacon said defending himself. Teddy was beyond angry at this point. He tore the photo of Deacon and the girls off the fridge and ripped it in half then threw it on the floor. "You stay away from them or you'll regret ever stepping foot into this house." Teddy stepped towards Deacon seeing red. "Is that a threat, Mr. Mayor?" Deacon asked stepping towards Teddy. Teddy was silent. "That's what I thought." Deacon said turning to walk away. Teddy quickly picked up the glass vase of flowers and shook the flowers on the floor then smacked Deacon hard in the head with the vase. Deacon fell on the floor unconscious. Teddy didn't expect Deacon to fall so hard he'd end up lifeless on the floor. He knew he had to get out of there quickly before Rayna came home but he had to frame Deacon so it didn't look like he had been there. He ran to Deacon's truck and found the bottle of whiskey, hoping to make it look like Deacon had been drinking. He opened the bottle and poured it down the sink and left the bottle around Deacon's unconscious body. He quickly ran out of the house and left in his car.

Maddie was at camp. She was bored to tears. The kids were beading macaroni on a string to make a necklace. She hid her cell phone under the table to text her friend. She knew her friend was older and had her license. She was able to sneak away and her friend came and picked her up. Her friend dropped her off at the house. Maddie walked into the house. She placed her backpack down and noticed Deacon lying on the floor with the whiskey bottle she found in his car earlier that morning. It was empty. "Deacon? Deacon?" she bent down to shake his shoulder. Tears began to flood her eyes. She picked up her cell phone and called her mother. Rayna answered pulling her car into the parking lot of the fitness center. "Hey Sweetie, how's camp?" "I snuck home and I think Deacon's dead." Maddie screamed and cried. "What?" Rayna said her voice dropped. "He's laying on the floor and he won't wake up. Mom, I'm scared." "I'm on my way. Call 9-1-1-." Rayna said in a panic as she whipped her car in the opposite direction to head home.

Maddie hung up and called 9-1-1. Rayna rushed home to find Deacon laying on the floor. There were flowers and candles and the bottle of whiskey strung around the house. She bent over him, remembering all the times she found him like this when he had been drinking. "Deacon. Deacon! Oh God, Deacon!" She yelled feeling around for a pulse. Her heart was racing and she was shaking, she couldn't find a pulse. There was a knock at the door. Maddie ran and got it still crying herself. It was the paramedics. They checked him out. Rayna ran over to Maddie and hugged her tightly. "Is he okay?" Maddie asked the paramedics. "He has a slow pulse but we'll get him to the hospital so they can do more work on him there." Said the paramedics. They hoisted him up on the stretcher and headed out. Rayna and Maddie got in the car and followed behind.  
They both sobbed the whole way there. "It's all my fault. If I didn't make a big deal about the whiskey bottle he wouldn't be on his way to the hospital!" Maddie said. "Hey, it's not your fault and he will get better." Rayna reassured her daughter. "How do you know?" Maddie asked. "We have to have faith, Maddie."  
The two of them arrived at the hospital. They rushed over to the reception desk. The two girls behind the desk were talking and giggling to one another. Rayna pounded her hand on the desk in an urgent way. "Excuse me!" She said. The girls looked up and gasped. "I'm looking for Deacon Claybourne. He was just brought in." She informed the receptionists. The girls shared a look. "Aren't you Rayna Jaymes?" The one girl said in shock. "Yes I am." She breathed a sigh of frustration. "Now I really need to see Deacon Claybourne. Can you give me a room number please?" The girls stared at her. She through her arms up in anger. "I need to see him now." She said as she turned around to see a nurse on break walking through the halls. "Thank God! Have you seen a man with dark hair, unconscious, just checked in a few minutes ago, his name is Deacon Claybourne?" Rayna asked the nurse. "No I'm sorry. I'm on break." The nurse said as she kept walking. Rayna ran down the hall where she found two doctors in a serious conversation. She overheard one of them. "Claybourne in 122 needs blood work and a CT." Rayna ran up and interrupted. "We're Mr Claybourne's family and we'd like to see him." She insisted. "I'm sorry ma'am you'll have to wait in the waiting room until we know more." The doctor pointed down the hall to the waiting room. "I just need to know he's okay. I need to see him." She persisted. "We'll have more answers after we run a few tests." The doctor said coldly.  
They sat nervously waiting in the waiting room. Rayna paced a few times. She saw Deacon being wheeled out by several different doctors. She ran out. "Deacon? Deacon. What's happening? Where are you taking him?" She asked eagerly as she walked with them as they pushed him on the gurney. "Ma'am he's in critical condition. We need to get him down to ICU." The doctor demanded. "Please tell me what's going on." She pleaded through tears. "Someone will come out when we know more." The doctors rushed off before Rayna could say anything else.  
About 2 hours later a doctor brought Rayna and Maddie into a family room. It was more private than the waiting room. The doctor was accompanied by a police officer. "Please tell me he's going to be okay. I know his history with alcohol but he's been clean for 14 years, I didn't think he'd turn to the bottle again." Rayna stated. "There was no alcohol found in the blood work." The doctor said calmly. "What?" Rayna got chills. "There was trauma to the head. It's quite severe if I'm putting it bluntly." The doctor said. "What could've caused this?" Rayna asked worried, her voice shaking. "I was hoping you could fill in the blanks." The police officer said. "I wasn't home, no one was home except for Deacon." Rayna said wishing she could be more helpful. "Why don't you start from the beginning of the day. Maybe we can gather some conclusion from there." The police officer said. "He got up, made our daughters breakfast, we left the house and my daughter found a bottle of whiskey in the backseat. He said it wasn't his. He's a recovering alcoholic. We dropped the girls off at camp and headed back home. I offered to get rid of the bottle but he said he would be fine and then I left for work and I checked in with him. He sounded fine on the phone. I didn't see him again until-" Rayna's voice trailed off as she broke into tears. "This was not a self destruction kind of thing. Someone put a lot of force to Deacon's head and it sounds like a setup because there was no alcohol found in the blood work. Now I'm a big country music fan and I saw your engagement on CMT when I was on my lunch break. That was recent wasn't it?" The police officer asked. "Yes just this morning!" Rayna replied. "Can you think of anyone who would object to your engagement to Mr Claybourne?" The doctor asked.

Rayna thought for a moment. The doctors pager went off and he excused himself. Rayna stood up to follow him. "Wait!" She called after him. "I'm sorry I have to take this." He grabbed the door knob. "Is it Deacon? When can we see him?" Maddie pipes up and asked. The doctor left without a word. Maddie and Rsyna returned to the police officer. She knew if Teddy was in town he would try to contact the girls first. "If you can think of anyone please let us know. They could be in a lot of trouble. For now we're going to put caution tape around your house until the investigation is complete." Rayna's jaw dropped. "You mean I can't go home until you find the person who did this?" She asked. "An officer can assist you to the house so you can pack a few things up but for now you're going to want to find a family member or a friend to stay with." The officer said in a serious voice as he stood up and left.  
Rayna began pacing again. A nurse with long blonde hair entered the room. "Excuse me. Are you Deacon Claybourne's family?" She asked in a soft voice. "Yes, can we see him now?" Rayna asked. "I'm sorry." The nurse started to say. Maddie ran over to her mother. "You said he was going to be fine!" Maddie screamed with her teenage attitude. Rayna stood frozen in her tracks. She couldn't move, she couldn't speak, she couldn't even hear Maddie screaming at her. "The doctor found a brain aneurysm that could burst any minute now. It's slowly leaking but it could rupture at anytime. We need to get him into surgery as quickly as possible however we need a family member's signature before we can operate. Are you his wife?" The nurse asked. "Fiancé" Rayna said quickly. "We really need a family member to sign the form." The nurse said. "I'm his daughter." Maddie spoke up. "The family member must be over the age of 18 to sign. I'm sorry Sweetie." The nurse reassured Maddie. "He listed Scarlett O'Connor as his emergency contact but I thought since you two were here you might be able to sign so we can start the operation but I'll have the front desk contact her right away." The nurse said turning on her heels and leaving.  
Rayna grabbed her keys. "Mom where are you going?" Maddie asked. "To pick up Scarlett. You heard the nurse we need her here now otherwise Deacon's condition may worsen and I'll be damned if I'm going to let that happen!" Rayna said then realizing she just swore in front of Maddie. Rayna went to grab the door knob. "Mom!" Maddie whimpered. "Stay put and call me if something comes up." Rayna instructed her daughter.  
Maddie held the door open watching her mother brisk walk down the hall until she was almost out of sight. She could just about see her mother when she noticed her mother stopped to talk to someone but she couldn't make out who it was.  
"Scarlett! Thank God!" Rayna said putting both her hands on Scarlett's shoulders. "Rayna! What happened? I tried to call Uncle Deacon after our rehearsal and when he didn't answer I got scared after what you told me you found in his truck this morning. So I went over to your house and there were 3 police cars there and they told me a man had been taken to the hospital." Scarlett ranted. Rayna grabbed her hand and practically dragged her down the hall. "I'll explain everything but Deacon needs surgery. You're the only person who can sign for it." Rayna said trying to find the nurse again. They passed the room Maddie was waiting in. Scarlett's cell phone rang.  
Rayna found the nurse. "Here she is." Rayna shouted. "Should I get that?" Scarlett asked trying to free her hand from Rayna's tight grip. "The hospital is contacting you right now. Mr Claybourne needs surgery. We found a brain aneurysm that's leaking and could lead to trouble down the road so we need to operate right away." The nurse explained. "Oh my gosh!" Scarlett exclaimed as she took the pen and the clipboard from the nurse and managed to sign her name. Her mind was racing, she couldn't tell if she signed on the line or not but the nurse yanked the clipboard out of her hands and ran to find the doctor and prep Deacon for surgery.


End file.
